'말해보카' Ehapseoft Names Kim Woojun New CEO

Epopsoft Appoints New CEO Kim Woo-joon to Lead Innovation for AI English Learning App 'MalheboCA' Epopsoft, which has been bringing a new dynamic to the domestic edutech market with its AI English learning app 'MalheboCA', announced the appointment of Kim Woo-joon, its Chief Product Officer (CPO), as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at its regular shareholders' meeting, laying the groundwork for a new leap forward. Former CEOs Park Jong-heum and Choi Young-min, who led the initial planning of 'MalheboCA', will focus on discovering new business opportunities as Chief Creative Officers (CCOs), expanding the company's future vision. The new CEO, Kim Woo-joon, joined Epopsoft in January 2019 as co-Chief Technology Officer (CTO), overseeing the development of 'MalheboCA' and driving the service's core growth. Notably, serving as CPO since April 2023, he has demonstrated outstanding achievements in product enhancement and execution. CEO Kim's career shines with technology-driven leadership. In 2003, while studying Electrical Engineering at Seoul National University, he began his career at Wizet Studio (now Nexon), the developer of the popular game 'MapleStory', and was promoted to development team leader within two years of joining, quickly earning recognition for his skills. Subsequently, he served as development director at Electronic Arts (EA) and mobile game company Party Games, accumulating in-depth understanding and experience across the PC and mobile game industries. This game development know-how was fully integrated into the development of 'MalheboCA' after he joined Epopsoft. CEO Kim's key contribution was the exquisite combination of gamification elements and educational content with former CEOs Park Jong-heum and Choi Young-min, maximizing learning effectiveness. He organically added 'listening practice' and 'grammar practice' to the initial English vocabulary quiz-centric model, evolving it into a comprehensive learning app where users can build solid English skills from the ground up. In 2023, he also successfully launched 'Epop', the Japanese version of 'MalheboCA', confirming its potential for global market expansion. Epopsoft announced that with the appointment of new CEO Kim Woo-joon, it plans to accelerate the development of conversational learning concepts that will create synergy with its existing learning areas, as well as its global market expansion into regions like the Spanish-speaking world. The company emphasized, "CPO Kim Woo-joon, who possesses a deep understanding of the product and swift execution capabilities, is the right person to lead the company's growth and innovation." CEO Kim Woo-joon stated his strong ambition, saying, "Over the past seven years, Epopsoft has presented a new paradigm of 'fun and accessible English education,' and we will further enhance the service value of 'MalheboCA' and grow into a leading company in the domestic and international edutech markets through new business development." Meanwhile, 'MalheboCA' has surpassed 7 million cumulative downloads as of February 2024, demonstrating explosive popularity. Based on this, Epopsoft recently recorded annual sales of 22 billion KRW, successfully turning a profit after 7 years since its founding, and entering a stable growth trajectory.